1/10/08

Coronary Christians

As I write this Preface I have just preached to my people several messages in which I pleaded with them to be ‘coronary Christians,’ not ‘adrenal Christians.’ Not that adrenaline is bad, I said; it gets me through lots of Sundays. But it lets you down on Mondays. The heart is another kind of friend. It just keeps on serving—very quietly, through good days and bad days, happy and sad, high and low, appreciated and unappreciated. It never says, ‘I don’t like your attitude, Piper, I’m taking a day off.’ It just keeps humbly lub-dubbing along. It endures the way adrenaline doesn’t.

Coronary Christians are like the heart in the causes they serve. Adrenal Christians are like adrenaline—a spurt of energy and then fatigue. What we need in the cause of is not spurts of energy, but people who endure for the long haul. Marathoners, not sprinters. (The Roots of Endurance, John Piper)

The heart is a good picture of God's call for His children in service. "It just keeps on serving—very quietly, through good days and bad days, happy and sad, high and low, appreciated and unappreciated." What does this look like in my day? It means going to Wal-Mart every Thursday to buy groceries, or doing the laundry each week, or scrubbing the poop stains from Charis' onesies, or continually seeking God in prayer for strength.

The bottom line is that I am not naturally a "coronary Christian." There are many times when Wal-Mart is the last place on earth I want to be or I wish I could open my oven and dinner would be ready-to-serve. My flesh does not desire to serve consistently and "endure for the long haul." This is why I must cry out to the Lord to strengthen me to serve. I cannot do it on my own. I am weak and frail, but He is mighty to help.

"But whoever would be great among you must be your servant, and whoever would be first among you must be your slave, even as the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.” (Matthew 20:26-28)

6 comments:

Mark Altrogge said...

My son sure has a great wife.

Stephanie said...

Jen,

It's encouraging to walk alongside of you because of your desire to grow in these things, though you already radiate a heart of service.

Just don't buy any beans at Wal-Mart...or else.
Steph

Jen said...

Thanks Mark, but I would disagree...I definitely married up!

Jen said...

Thank you for the encouraging words. You have always been such a willing servant.

Do you want pb or tuna?

Anonymous said...

Couldn't agree more about Wal-Mart. I think it comes in line just after "dishes" and just before "plucking eyebrows" ... There are few chores I dislike more.

Thanks for sharing your walk and reading material!
Sara

Jen said...

Yes, plucking eyebrows would definitely be on that list. Haha. It is encouraging to know my struggles are not uncommon.